Duty counsel Georgia Koulis, left to right, Alek Minassian, Justice of the Peace Stephen Waisberg, and Crown prosecutor Joe Callaghan are shown in court in Toronto on April 24, 2018 in this courtroom sketch. Police have said eight women and two men died after Alek Minassian, 25, of Richmond Hill, Ont., allegedly drove a rental van down a busy sidewalk on April 23. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Alexandra Newbould

Three new attempted murder charges for man accused in Toronto van attack

The man accused of killing 10 people and injuring 16 others in the van attack in Toronto last month appeared in court today

He appeared in a north Toronto court by video on Thursday and said nothing as the three new charges were laid. The case was adjourned to Sept. 14.

Outside court, Minassian’s lawyer said he didn’t want to talk about how his client was doing.

“This isn’t a time to discuss Mr. Minassian, this is still a grieving period for the city,” Boris Bytensky told reporters. “There are many families that are grieving for those lives lost and those injured. Our thoughts, the Minassian family’s thoughts, are with them.”

Bytensky added that he had no intention of litigating the case through the press or the public.

“I’m well aware of the emotion in the city about this. I’ve very respectful of that,” he said. “I’m not going to float things for purposes of suspicious. I simply am going to reassure people that we will handle this case as professionally as possible, as I know the Crown will as well.”

Those who died in last month’s attack ranged in age from 22 to 94, and included a student from South Korea and a man from Jordan.

Insp. Bryan Bott, the head of Toronto’s homicide squad, said shortly after the attack that police hadn’t identified a motive, but that the evidence they had didn’t meet the threshold for terrorism charges.